This is for Reeves' posterity…. Really, it's for Caroline because she has been so good about reminding me to write this! OK, no, it's for Reeves.
Reeves' first birthday was on a Wednesday, so the following Saturday, we had his party. It was after much thought and debate that Bryant and I ultimately resolved to limit the invitation list to just family and Maddelle and her kids. With working and yard/house work and a small house, it was just too overwhelming to think about having so many guests. And besides, even with only family, there were still about 20 people there! As much as we missed our friends and their chilluns, at the end of the exhausting day (and night before), we were both thankful we had limited the list.
First and foremost, let me give MAJOR props to Bryant for working his tail off in the yard. In just two days, it went from the before picture on Landscaper's Challenge to a yard I am proud to call ours. We now have thick, green grass and pretty flowers everywhere.
The day started uneventfully, like any other day. Reeves woke up around 8:00, had a bottle, breakfast, and played. He went down for his nap around 10:00. This surprised me a bit, not because that is not a normal time for him to go down, but because today was Party Day, and, given his past performances on busy days like this, I was not expecting him to cooperate at all. Perhaps he knew it was for him, and he knew how much we still had to do (umm, like make his cake!), but he napped like an angel and slept for two hours - just enough time for me to get stuff done, but not so long that he couldn't come with me to run the last few errands that needed to be done. While we were gone, from 12:00 to 2:00, Bryant was working feverishly in the yard. My dad called me, at the Pig Wig, and asked if there was anything he could do. I didn't even check with B, just sent Dad over there to help. And thank heavens for him! With his help, B was able to get all the yard done with exactly 30 seconds to spare!
Oh, I forgot to mention another "angel" moment for Reeves. He and I returned home just before 2:00 to find B and Dad still in the yard, of course. Well, there were STILL other things that I needed to do as well, but what to do with Reeves? I noticed that he looked a bit sleepy, so I took a chance and went inside directly to his crib and put him down. Perfect child! He was out for another hour and fifteen!
Guests arrived at 3:00, with Grandmother and Poppa leading the way. Shortly thereafter, Reeves woke up. It took him a while to warm up to the idea of all these people in his house and yard, but it wasn't long before he was outside pushing his new toys and trying to eat the sidewalk chalk.
The day could not have been any better.
I was quite worried that we were all going to be sweltering outside at 3:00, but there was actually a cool breeze. We had fried chicken, best ever mac-n-cheese (thank you, Anna), and coleslaw. Of course, there was cake and ice cream. Reeves, however, had his cake that I had made with soy milk and an egg substitute - not too bad, believe it or not.
It wasn't very light, though, had more of the consistency of banana bread. He had his Tofutti ice cream. We are very lucky that it is in our day and age that he has thise allergies because there are so many things for him to still have. The only thing I have found that doesn't really equal the dairy original is cheese. Reeves didn't like it either, and I'm glad because the smell almost made me sick! Whatever, I still think we should buy soybean futures.
We had a wonderful time at the party.
I had put up the kiddie pool - wonderful for the older ones, but I should have thought about also putting up the smaller one for Reeves and Henry. There was much too much big kid action in the pool for the little ones to be around! Julie let us borrow her jump castle - a HUGE hit!
Oh, how Reeves wanted to be big enough to play in it! Mostly, we all just sat around and watched the kids and talked about the kids and took pictures of the kids. It was truly a perfect first birthday party. Reeves hit the hay around 8:00 that night, drunk on soy milk, cake, ice cream, and cheerios.
I still can't believe he's already one! 
The Three RBBairs
Diddle, diddle, dumpling, Reeves, my son,
Anyway, his feet were measured, and (here's one thing he got from me) his left foot is bigger than his right foot. 4 1/2 and 4. So we bought size 5's. Since we have some hand-me-down red Keds, we bought brown sandals and saddle oxfords. 
OMG! He looks too big in shoes! I begged Shantal, our lovely helper, to take them off of him. "Please, don't sell them to me!" 
Alas, it was not to be. Much to my chagrin, Reeves must grow up. He is already off and running, and, while he has always had an independent spirit, I think he realizes that his shoes give him an even greater sense of freedom than he had before. No more Mama picking him up when the concrete is too hot; no more carrying him over things I think might hurt his little feet. When we pull in the driveway, I get him out, put him down, then get my bags out. No more holding him and contorting my body to get the bags. This is crazy! And he loves it! He loves negotiating steps, and he has even learned to turn around and go backwards down them. (Thank you, Gams!) He loves walking from the concrete to the grass and the grass to the concrete, the concrete to the bricks to the grass and back; pushing his wagon, which is three times his size; pushing the exercise ball, which is twice his size; balancing on and stepping over the hose which is, more often than not, stretched across the driveway. All of these outdoor activities which were, prior to Saturday, hindered by the interaction of the elements and his bare feet, can now go on for hours thanks to his new shoes. 
Baby needed new shoes, but Big Boy got them.
Bopper gave Reeves his first bit of corn on the cob and worked on teaching him how to blow sugars. Unfortunately, R gets a bit distracted during the hand to mouth part of it and ends up just making Indian noises. Whatever, it's all adorable! I love it when Bopper comes to town because he is such a good influence on Bryant. For some reason, when I suggest to Bryant that we work in the yard, it comes across as nagging, but when Bopper just comes and starts doing it, Bryant is encouraged to do it as well. I'm not quite sure I understand, but it's just as well because, to be honest, B and I don't work terribly well together on outdoor projects. I think we have two different plans of attack, and they come from opposite ends of the spectrum. Nevertheless, Bryant and Bopper got a ton of fencing up this weekend - all the way from the back of the lot to the edge of the house. Yay, no more tighty-whiteys in our face!! 
Our little world is about to be rocked. Sunday morning, we caught him standing on the drawer handle on the oven, holding on to the oven handle door, trying to get at the pan on the stove top. 
Here is climbing onto a rocking chair at the beach, and all by himself, please! 
As soon as Mom sat down, he promptly crawled out of his puddle in the sand, and onto her lap. Is there anything that makes you feel better or more loved?
It was a bit anticlimactic watching her go. I'm not really sure what I was expecting, but if nothing else, it gave us an excuse to go out to dinner AND get a bit of exercise. We ran into the Boykins and the Baileys. And I got to meet baby Betsy. She is just precious! Oh how I missed the days of the bucket seat as Reeves was batting my water all over me as I tried to give him a sip! Thank you, Ann, for helping me dry off!
